Lyon Does It Again: Sabres Drop Panthers, Hurt Playoff Hopes

SUNRISE — Alex Lyon helped get the Florida Panthers into the playoffs in 2023 and he may do the same for the Buffalo Sabres this season.

Lyon did his former team no favors on Monday, however.

The Panthers lost for the fourth straight time with Lyon making 38 saves in a 5-3 win that puts a real crimp in Florida’s playoff hopes.

“We’re in trouble,’’ Matthew Tkachuk said afterward.

With the loss, the Panthers now trail the Sabres by 10 points for the top wild-card spot and are nine back of Boston for the final playoff position.

Florida has 27 games remaining — 25 of which come after the Olympic break which starts following Thursday’s game in Tampa Bay.

The Panthers had a 2-0 lead early in the first, but the Sabres tied it by the end of the period and led 3-2 before Uvis Balinskis scored on a power play at the end of the second.

A power play goal by Jason Zucker gave Buffalo the lead for the final time at 5:31 of the third.

Florida played the final two periods without center Sam Bennett, who left the game after the first with an upper-body injury and did not return.

The Panthers are now without the four centers they played with in the Stanley Cup Final back in June: Sasha Barkov, Bennett, Anton Lundell, and Tomas Nosek.

Buffalo is 2-1 against the Panthers this season with the final meeting coming after the Olympic break later this month.

HOW THEY SCORED

• Panthers 1, Sabres 0 (0:37 1st): Niko Mikkola’s shot from the left circle ends up on the stick of Sandis Vilmanis who beats Alex Lyon for the early lead.
• Panthers 2, Sabres 0 (5:56 1st): Sam Reinhart loses the puck as he drove toward the net with Evan Rodrigues getting it and sending a soft shot toward the slot that went off of the skate of Jason Zucker and bounced past Lyon.
• Panthers 2, Sabres 1 (15:03 1st): Tage Thompson fires a rocket from the top of the slot that goes top corner.
• Sabres 2, Panthers 2 (18:26 1st): The Sabres come down on an odd-man rush with Peyton Krebs getting in front of the net for the feed from Rasmus Dahlin.
• Sabres 3, Panthers 2 (5:44 2nd): Sergei Bobrovsky comes way out of the net to play a puck that Ryan McLeod gets to first. With the net open, McLeod gets it to Zach Benson who puts it past Gus Forsling.
• Panthers 3, Sabres 3 (18:59 2nd PP): Reinhart sends a sharp cross-ice pass from the corner to a waiting Uvis Balinskis who one-times it from the right circle.
• Sabres 4, Panthers 3 (5:31 3rd PP): Zucker one-times a Josh Doan pass from behind the net to give Buffalo the lead back.
• Sabres 5, Panthers 3 (17:51 3rd): Doan cashes in of a pass from Krebs to end this one.

FHN’S 3 STARS

• 1. Alex Lyon, Sabres
• 2. Peyton Krebs, Sabres
• 3. Josh Doan, Sabres

ON DECK: GAME No. 56

BOSTON BRUINS at FLORIDA PANTHERS

• When: Wednesday, 7 p.m.
• Where: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise
• Local TV: Scripps Sports — WSFL 39 (Miami/FTL); WPTV 5/WHDT 9 (WPB); LAFF 36.3 (SWFla)
• Streaming: Panthers+; ESPN+
• Radio: WQAM; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM
• Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM 932, NHL App
• This Season (Panthers Lead 1-0) — At Florida: Tuesday; April 2. At Boston: Panthers 4, Bruins 3 (Oct. 21)
• Last Season: Tied 2-2
• All-time Regular Season Series: Boston leads 66-40-7, 6 ties
• Up Next for the Panthers: Thursday at Tampa Bay Lightning, 7:30 (ESPN+)